America is not broken — it’s unbalanced. In Balance, Air Force veteran and Human Resources leader Alex Campbell delivers a rare blend of memoir and economic clarity, revealing how the collapse of the American middle class has played out in real lives, real families, and real workplaces. Campbell’s story begins in small-town Michigan, where he was adopted at birth, raised by hardworking parents, and grew up alongside an older brother who suffered from addiction and mental illness. Through humor, heartbreak, and the quiet lessons of sacrifice, he watched the American Dream fray long before he had the words for what was happening. His Air Force years taught him leadership and resilience. His HR career — especially inside behavioral-health and substance-abuse treatment — exposed him to the grinding reality faced by millions of working Americans: people doing everything right and still falling behind. Then came the turning point. Through years of “lunchtime reading,” Campbell began connecting the dots between wages, inequality, national security, and the shrinking middle class. The result was a simple, historically grounded proposal: the 250:1 income ratio, a structural fix rooted in the decades when America thrived and working families had dignity and stability. In clear, accessible prose, Campbell shows: why wages collapsed and why meritocracy never fully explained it - how offshoring and executive extraction hollowed out towns and families - why inequality weakens schools, healthcare, and democracy itself - how 250:1 raises pay, strengthens companies, and rebuilds national security - what a restored middle class means for housing, childcare, retirement, and everyday life Part personal journey, part economic argument, Balance is a hopeful, practical blueprint for a country on the edge of renewal. It’s a book for anyone who believes America is worth fighting for — and that the people who built this nation should never be the ones left behind.